Puri, July 25: As chants of "Jai Jagannath" echoed through the sacred town of Puri, an ocean of devotees gathered on Saturday to witness the divine spectacle of Suna Besha, when Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra and Devi Subhadra were adorned in dazzling gold ornaments atop their chariots before the Lion's Gate of the Srimandir.

The centuries-old ritual, symbolising the Lord's divine majesty and boundless grace, filled the air with devotion as lakhs of pilgrims waited patiently for a glimpse of the Holy Trinity in their resplendent golden attire.

Celebrated on Ashadha Shukla Ekadashi, the day after the deities return from their nine-day annual stay at the Gundicha Temple, Suna Besha is among the most significant rituals of the Rath Yatra festival. The dazzling spectacle attracted an enormous crowd, with devotees waiting for hours to receive a glimpse of the Holy Trinity in their resplendent golden attire.

According to temple authorities, the deities were decorated with nearly 208 kg of gold ornaments and jewellery, including intricately crafted crowns, golden hands and feet, earrings, necklaces, peacock feather motifs, lotus designs, conch, chakra, mace and several other traditional ornaments. The precious jewellery, stored in the outer chamber of the Ratna Bhandar treasury, was transported to the chariots under stringent security and formally handed over to designated temple servitors for the ceremonial adornment.

To manage the massive influx of pilgrims, the district administration implemented extensive crowd-control measures. Multi-layered security arrangements, including armed police personnel, drone surveillance, AI-enabled cameras and advanced traffic management systems, were put in place to ensure smooth movement of devotees and protect the temple's invaluable ornaments throughout the ceremony.